The Garrett College Board of Trustees has voted to hold the in-county tuition rate to $99 per credit hour for the sixth straight year.
The $99 rate – the lowest among Maryland’s 16 community colleges – will once again be in effect for the 2025-26 academic year. GC’s trustees, on the recommendation of the College administration, reduced its in-county rate from $109 to $99 per credit for in-county residents in 2020.
“One of our primary goals is to make college accessible for everyone,” said Dr. Richard Midcap, Garrett College’s president. “One strategy to achieve that goal is to keep the rate we charge Garrett County residents as low as possible. That also allows us to make the most of the Garrett County Scholarship – which I think is the most generous community college scholarship offered anywhere in Maryland.”
The Board of Trustees also kept residence hall rates flat for the sixth consecutive year, and set the combined fee – a per-credit-hour charge to all students – at $49 per credit, the same as in the current fiscal year.
“Few colleges have held tuition and residence hall rates flat for six years, especially with the high inflation rate since 2021,” said Midcap, noting overall prices have increased over 21 percent in four years.
The College also held flat the tuition rate for High School Dual Enrollment at $49.50 per credit hour. GC charges half the in-county rate for HSDE – a 50 percent discount rate that’s double what is required by law.
Midcap said holding the line on in-county tuition, dual enrollment costs, the combined fee, and residence hall rates “is really a testament to the work the College does on a daily basis to be fiscally responsible.”
“It’s also a tribute to the manner in which the Garrett County Commissioners support the College,” said Midcap. “Without their strong local support, we would be in a very different situation with respect to tuition, fees, and residence hall rates.”
